Best degree programs for Jewelers and Precious Stone and Metal Workers, ranked by enrollment
3 college programs and 28 schools train Jewelers and Precious Stone and Metal Workers. Compare graduates per year, cost and pay, $52,540 median wage, 22,440 U.S. jobs. Federal data.
3 college programs at 28 schools train jewelers and precious stone and metal workers, graduating 809 people a year (IPEDS completions). The largest is Jewelry Arts. The job pays a median of $52,540 (BLS OEWS May 2025).
About jewelers and precious stone and metal workers
Design, fabricate, adjust, repair, or appraise jewelry, gold, silver, other precious metals, or gems.
Fields of study that lead to this job
Grouped at the 4-digit CIP level, the tier our program pages are built on. Numbers are graduates per year.
3 degree programs that lead to this job
Ranked by graduates per year (IPEDS completions). Graduate earnings and debt are College Scorecard figures for people who finished the program, reported at the 4-digit CIP level, so specializations within one field share a figure. That is a different measurement from the occupation-wide wages further down this page.
| # | Program | Graduates / yr | Share of pipeline | Schools | Grad earnings (1 yr) | Median debt |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | CIP 50.0713 | 725 | 89.6% | 20 | $24,447 | $25,294 |
| 2 | CIP 47.0408 | 78 | 9.6% | 5 | $30,986 | $16,687 |
| 3 | CIP 50.0714 | 6 | 0.7% | 3 | $24,447 | $25,294 |
Top 28 schools by graduates into this job
Counting every feeder program a school offers, not just its largest one.
| # | School | Graduates / yr | Top feeder program | Grad rate | Net price | Acceptance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Gemological Institute of America - New York New York, NY Private not-for-profit · 1 feeder programs | 304 | Jewelry Arts | 89% | $35,098 | — |
| 2 | Gemological Institute of America - Carlsbad Carlsbad, CA Private not-for-profit · 1 feeder programs | 265 | Jewelry Arts | 91% | $30,331 | — |
| 3 | Paris Junior College Paris, TX Public · 1 feeder programs | 39 | Watchmaking and Jewelrymaking | 38% | — | — |
| 4 | Austin Community College District Austin, TX Public · 1 feeder programs | 32 | Jewelry Arts | 20% | — | — |
| 5 | Studio Jewelers New York, NY Private for-profit · 1 feeder programs | 30 | Jewelry Arts | 80% | $9,590 | — |
| 6 | Pinellas Technical College - St. Petersburg Saint Petersburg, FL Public · 1 feeder programs | 20 | Watchmaking and Jewelrymaking | 60% | — | — |
| 7 | Rhode Island School of Design Providence, RI Private not-for-profit · 1 feeder programs | 17 | Jewelry Arts | 89% | $41,764 | 19% |
| 8 | Haywood Community College Clyde, NC Public · 1 feeder programs | 15 | Jewelry Arts | 34% | — | — |
| 9 | Fashion Institute of Technology New York, NY Public · 1 feeder programs | 12 | Jewelry Arts | 81% | — | 60% |
| 10 | Central New Mexico Community College Albuquerque, NM Public · 1 feeder programs | 10 | Jewelry Arts | 31% | — | — |
| 11 | Academy of Art University San Francisco, CA Private for-profit · 1 feeder programs | 9 | Jewelry Arts | 34% | $40,294 | — |
| 12 | Gem City College Quincy, IL Private for-profit · 1 feeder programs | 9 | Watchmaking and Jewelrymaking | 87% | $13,910 | — |
| 13 | Rochester Institute of Technology Rochester, NY Private not-for-profit · 1 feeder programs | 8 | Jewelry Arts | 70% | $28,133 | 67% |
| 14 | North Seattle College Seattle, WA Public · 1 feeder programs | 7 | Watchmaking and Jewelrymaking | 33% | — | — |
| 15 | Massachusetts College of Art and Design Boston, MA Public · 1 feeder programs | 5 | Jewelry Arts | 69% | — | 76% |
| 16 | Pasadena City College Pasadena, CA Public · 1 feeder programs | 5 | Jewelry Arts | 48% | — | — |
| 17 | Cranbrook Academy of Art Bloomfield Hills, MI Private not-for-profit · 1 feeder programs | 4 | Metal Arts | — | — | — |
| 18 | Flathead Valley Community College Kalispell, MT Public · 1 feeder programs | 3 | Jewelry Arts | 29% | — | — |
| 19 | North Bennet Street School Boston, MA Private not-for-profit · 1 feeder programs | 3 | Watchmaking and Jewelrymaking | 90% | $35,199 | — |
| 20 | Santa Fe Community College Santa Fe, NM Public · 1 feeder programs | 3 | Jewelry Arts | 23% | — | — |
| 21 | Maine College of Art & Design Portland, ME Private not-for-profit · 1 feeder programs | 2 | Jewelry Arts | 52% | $34,336 | 76% |
| 22 | Arcadia University Glenside, PA Private not-for-profit · 1 feeder programs | 1 | Jewelry Arts | 67% | $23,796 | 80% |
| 23 | California College of the Arts San Francisco, CA Private not-for-profit · 1 feeder programs | 1 | Jewelry Arts | 61% | $40,041 | 91% |
| 24 | Folsom Lake College Folsom, CA Public · 1 feeder programs | 1 | Jewelry Arts | 44% | — | — |
| 25 | Rhode Island College Providence, RI Public · 1 feeder programs | 1 | Jewelry Arts | 48% | — | 92% |
| 26 | State University of New York at New Paltz New Paltz, NY Public · 1 feeder programs | 1 | Metal Arts | 72% | — | 62% |
| 27 | SUNY Buffalo State University Buffalo, NY Public · 1 feeder programs | 1 | Metal Arts | 33% | — | 73% |
| 28 | University of Akron Main Campus Akron, OH Public · 1 feeder programs | 1 | Jewelry Arts | 52% | — | 60% |
What jewelers and precious stone and metal workers earn
What people already working in this job earn (BLS OEWS May 2025). Not graduate earnings.
Top-paying states
Top-paying metro areas
Job outlook
Bureau of Labor Statistics Employment Projections, 2024 to 2034.
Where the jobs are, state by state
Pick a state for in-state pay, the schools there, and the programs they run.
| State | Median pay | Jobs | Concentration | Schools | Graduates / yr |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| New York | $61,720 | 4,300 | 3.07× | 6 | 356 |
| California | $60,790 | 2,300 | 0.88× | 5 | 281 |
| Texaslimited | $47,590 | 1,810 | 0.89× | 2 | 71 |
| Floridalimited | $51,470 | 1,070 | 0.74× | 1 | 20 |
| Rhode Islandlimited | $48,800 | 540 | 7.52× | 2 | 18 |
| North Carolinalimited | $55,420 | 770 | 1.08× | 1 | 15 |
| New Mexicolimited | $46,200 | 230 | 1.84× | 2 | 13 |
| Illinoislimited | $54,990 | 610 | 0.70× | 1 | 9 |
| Massachusettslimited | $51,060 | 830 | 1.58× | 2 | 8 |
| Washingtonlimited | $60,380 | 290 | 0.56× | 1 | 7 |
| Michiganlimited | $56,610 | 460 | 0.72× | 1 | 4 |
| Montanalimited | $37,580 | 80 | 1.12× | 1 | 3 |
| Mainelimited | $48,080 | 50 | 0.53× | 1 | 2 |
| Ohiolimited | $48,190 | 430 | 0.54× | 1 | 1 |
| Pennsylvanialimited | $54,880 | 760 | 0.87× | 1 | 1 |
Skills and tools
From O*NET, the U.S. Department of Labor's occupational database. Importance is a 1 to 5 scale.
What they do day to day
- Clean and polish metal items and jewelry pieces, using jewelers' tools, polishing wheels, and chemical baths.
- Smooth soldered joints and rough spots, using hand files and emery paper, and polish smoothed areas with polishing wheels or buffing wire.
- Create jewelry from materials such as gold, silver, platinum, and precious or semiprecious stones.
- Cut and file pieces of jewelry such as rings, brooches, bracelets, and lockets.
- Examine assembled or finished products to ensure conformance to specifications, using magnifying glasses or precision measuring instruments.
- Make repairs, such as enlarging or reducing ring sizes, soldering pieces of jewelry together, and replacing broken clasps and mountings.
- Compute costs of labor and materials to determine production costs of products and articles.
- Position stones and metal pieces, and set, mount, and secure items in place, using setting and hand tools.
Skills
- Active Listening3.1
- Speaking3.1
- Critical Thinking3.0
- Monitoring2.9
- Reading Comprehension2.8
- Writing2.6
- Active Learning2.4
- Mathematics2.4
Knowledge areas
- Customer and Personal Service3.9
- Production and Processing3.5
- Sales and Marketing3.4
- Administration and Management3.3
- Design3.2
- Mathematics3.1
Abilities
- Near Vision4.0
- Finger Dexterity3.6
- Arm-Hand Steadiness3.5
- Visual Color Discrimination3.2
- Problem Sensitivity3.1
- Oral Comprehension3.1
Core activities
- Thinking Creatively4.0
- Making Decisions and Solving Problems3.7
- Getting Information3.6
- Judging the Qualities of Objects, Services, or People3.6
- Inspecting Equipment, Structures, or Materials3.5
- Estimating the Quantifiable Characteristics of Products, Events, or Information3.5
Tools and technology
hotmarks an O*NET hot technologyHow to get in
How to become a Jeweler
Job zone 3 of 5 · SVP 6.0 to < 7.0- Typical entry education
- High school diploma or equivalent
- On-the-job training
- Long-term on-the-job training
Most occupations in this zone require training in vocational schools, related on-the-job experience, or an associate's degree.
Previous work-related skill, knowledge, or experience is required for these occupations. For example, an electrician must have completed three or four years of apprenticeship or several years of vocational training, and often must have passed a licensing exam, in order to perform the job.
Employees in these occupations usually need one or two years of training involving both on-the-job experience and informal training with experienced workers. A recognized apprenticeship program may be associated with these occupations.
Every major mapped to this job
The official federal mapping behind the rankings above.
All 3 majors mapped to Jewelers and Precious Stone and Metal Workers3 of them graduated someone in the latest IPEDS year. NCES CIP 2020 → SOC 2018 crosswalk.+
- 47.0408Watchmaking and Jewelrymaking
- 50.0713Jewelry Arts
- 50.0714Metal Arts
Related careers
Jobs O*NET identifies as close to this one, with their own pay and outlook.
Common questions
What degree do you need to become a Jeweler?+
High school diploma or equivalent is the typical entry-level education BLS reports for this occupation. The most common program people actually graduate from is Jewelry Arts, which awarded 725 degrees in 2024-25, 89.6% of everyone graduating from a program that feeds this career.
Which college majors lead to becoming a Jeweler?+
The NCES CIP-to-SOC crosswalk maps 3 programs to this occupation. The largest are Fine and Studio Arts, Precision Systems Maintenance and Repair Technologies/Technicians. Together they graduate about 809 people a year.
How much do jewelers and precious stone and metal workers earn?+
The median is $52,540 a year (BLS OEWS May 2025). The middle range runs from $35,580 at the 10th percentile to $87,540 at the 90th. This is pay for people already working in the occupation, not the same thing as graduate earnings one year after finishing a degree.
Is demand for jewelers and precious stone and metal workers growing?+
BLS projects a -5.5% change in employment between 2024 and 2034, decline, with roughly 4,000 openings a year nationally once retirements and job changes are counted.
How many schools offer programs for this career?+
28 institutions reported graduates from at least one of the 3 programs that feed this occupation in IPEDS 2024-25. Rankings on this page use graduates per year, because the federal data publishes no enrollment count by program.
What other job titles do jewelers and precious stone and metal workers work under?+
Employers advertise this work under many names. O*NET records Jeweler, Goldsmith, Gemologist, Lapidarist, Silversmith, Bench Jeweler among the most commonly reported, all mapping to SOC 51-9071.
About the data on this page
Rankings use IPEDS completions 2024-25, degrees awarded per year. That is the closest federal measure of how many people a program puts into a career, because no federal dataset publishes enrollment by program. Wages and employment come from BLS OEWS May 2025, growth and openings from BLS Employment Projections 2024-34, and which majors lead to which jobs from the NCES CIP 2020 to SOC 2018 crosswalk. Occupation descriptions, tasks, skills and tools are O*NET 30.3 (CC BY 4.0, U.S. Department of Labor/ETA).
BLS Occupational Employment & Wage Statistics
May 2025Wages, employment counts, location quotients and metro breakdowns.
BLS Employment Projections
2024–34Projected growth, annual openings and typical entry-level education.
IPEDS Completions
2024-25 (provisional)Graduates per year by program and institution — the ranking metric.
College Scorecard, Field of Study
2020-21 cohortsMedian graduate earnings one year after completion, and median debt.
Census Post-Secondary Employment Outcomes
latest availableGraduate earnings 1/5/10 years out, where the state participates.
NCES CIP 2020 and the CIP-to-SOC 2018 crosswalk
CIP 2020 / SOC 2018Which college programs officially lead to this occupation.
O*NET Database 30.3
30.3Tasks, skills, knowledge, tools, job zone and alternate job titles.
Official source →CC BY 4.0, U.S. Department of Labor / ETA
Explore every U.S. college in one conversation
Clema turns plain-language questions into sourced answers across every U.S. institution — earnings, aid, acceptance, graduation, safety, and athletics from IPEDS, College Scorecard, and 10+ federal datasets, built in.
Free for teams up to 3 · No credit card